This invention is directed to a tabletop action game which may be played by two, three or four players. It is a game that utilizes small parts, yet is safe for use by young children since the small parts are contained where they cannot be touched by the players while still being visible. Success in the game is dependent upon the dexterity and reflexes of the players and can be operated at different speeds to challenge different levels of skill.
The game provides the illusion that the small parts which resemble ants are actually crawling at high speeds around the platform, while in fact they are being moved by a disk rotating at relatively high speeds under a transparent plastic cover. Small depressions in the surface of the disk keep the plastic ants from slipping when the disk rotates and ensure that they will move rapidly. The walls on the under surface of the transparent plastic cover define pockets for capturing and holding the ants and establish flow paths around the periphery of the disk to direct the ants toward the pockets but away from directly entering the pockets. The arms which are movable by the players provide means for catching the ants as they flow past the entrances to the pockets. The exits from the pockets can be open to discharge the ants from the pockets when desired by the players.
The plastic parts which resemble ants that move on the rotating disk are made of what appears to be three small spherical portions of plastic joined together to form an elongated, somewhat cylindrical object that resembles the body of an ant. In actual practice, the ant body is molded as a single piece. The use of spherical portions to form the body rather than a solid cylinder provides an ant that does not have as much resistance to sliding and rolling friction as a cylinder would have. The ants are made of different colored plastics in equal numbers, with the colors of the groups of ants matching the colors of the pockets so each player will be able to quickly identify the ants he wishes to capture with his anteater arm. The arms enable the players to pick up ants of the desired color as the ants come around the barricades in the flow paths. By moving the arm after an ant is captured into alignment with the entrance to the pocket, the player can deposit the ant in his pocket. A normally closed but liftable gate is provided at the rear of the pocket to release the ants that have been captured if a player wishes to discharge the ants that have been captured.
Other purposes and objects of this invention will become apparent from a reading of the following specification, drawings and claims.